Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School

Inspection Report Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School

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115673 Unique Reference Number Gloucestershire Local Authority 296526 Inspection number 5 December 2006 Inspection date Graeme Bassett Reporting inspector

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This inspection of the school was carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005.

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School Lane School address Primary Type of school Ampney Crucis Voluntary aided School category Cirencester GL7 5SD 4 °11 Age range of pupils 01285 851440 Telephone number Mixed Gender of pupils 01285 851440 Fax number 62 Number on roll (school) Myra Bye Chair The governing body Appropriate authority Richard Woolston Headteacher 19 March 2003 Date of previous school inspection

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Inspection number Inspection date Age group 296526 5 December 2006 4 °11 Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated.

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Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Introduction

The inspection was carried out by two Additional Inspectors.

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Description of the school

This is a smaller-than-average village primary school with three classes, each having a mixed-age range, with small numbers in each year group. The school serves the local village and also accepts an increasing number of pupils from other villages and the nearby town of Cirencester. Most children are White British and very few have English as an additional language. The economic circumstances of the local area are more advantaged than most. The acting headteacher took up his appointment in September 2006 for one term. The new headteacher takes up her permanent appointment in January 2007. The school has a Healthy School award.

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Key for inspection grades

Outstanding Grade 1 Good Grade 2 Satisfactory Grade 3 Inadequate Grade 4 1 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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Grade: 2

This is a good and improving school. Despite the changes in headship and the appointment of an acting headteacher for one term, the leadership and management of the school are good. The acting headteacher has demonstrated good and often outstanding leadership and management skills in the short time since his appointment. He has built very successfully upon the strengths established by the previous headteacher and will leave the school having made further improvements. The staff, governors and parents share a clear vision for the future and there is a purposeful direction to the work of the school. The atmosphere in the school is calm and pupils and staff are eager and enthusiastic to do their best. Subject leaders for literacy and numeracy are developing their roles well but have not yet had opportunities to write action plans or to observe lessons in order to improve their subjects further. Governors recently worked conscientiously with the local authority to set up good

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Grade: 2

procedures when they appointed the new headteacher for January 2007. The governors' contribution to leadership and management is effective and good links have already been made with the new headteacher. Taking account of the school's track record of development since the last inspection, its capacity to make further improvements is good. There is rigour in the monitoring and evaluation of teaching, and this has resulted in good teaching and learning in all classes. Assessment records are also good and are used effectively to track each pupil's progress. As a result, standards and achievement have improved well since the last inspection. This is especially so by the end of Year 2, where standards are now above average. With the good teaching and provision in the Foundation Stage, all children achieve well and most reach the goals set for them. Pupils' good progress continues throughout Years 1 to 6 and by the end of Year 6

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Grade: 2

they are prepared well for their future economic well-being, with standards in English, mathematics and science that are well above average. Almost half the pupils reached the higher Level 5 in 2006, exceeding the challenging targets set by the school. The curriculum is good and teachers create meaningful links between subjects, resulting in an increase in pupils' enjoyment in lessons. However, the skills that are taught in English are not yet fully embedded in the planning of other subjects. Effective care, guidance and support ensure that pupils' personal development and well-being are good. Pupils' behaviour has improved significantly since the last inspection and is now good. Pupils have a good understanding of the need to remain healthy and they feel safe in school. The contributions they make to the school community are outstanding. Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is good but, although their awareness of multicultural customs and the traditions of

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Grade: 2

other people has improved, it is still only satisfactory.

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What the school should do to improve further

• Ensure subject leaders for literacy and numeracy are more rigorous in monitoring and evaluating all aspects of their subject to raise standards and achievement. 2 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006 • Ensure that the skills taught in literacy lessons are also securely embedded in the planning and teaching of other subjects. • Raise pupils' awareness of the multicultural customs and traditions of other people.

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Grade: 2

Achievement is good and standards are above average. Because of the variation in the size of year groups, comparisons with national standards can be unreliable but it is very clear that they have improved substantially since the last inspection. Children enter the Reception class with a wide range of ability but overall standards are broadly average. They make good progress, especially in their literacy and numeracy, and reach the national goals set for them in all areas of learning. Good progress throughout the rest of the school means that standards in Year 2 are now above average in reading, writing and mathematics, and well above average in Year 6 in English, mathematics and science. The results in the national tests in 2006 showed standards to be the best since before 2001. The pupils with English as an additional language (EAL) quickly gain enough knowledge of English to communicate with their teacher and other

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Grade: 2

children. Pupils with learning difficulties and disabilities (LDD) make good progress. Standards in information and communication technology (ICT) are now average and greatly improved.

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Grade: 2

Pupils are enthusiastic learners. They enjoy their lessons and coming to school because teachers 'give us interesting things to do and are patient with us'. As a result, attendance is above average. Behaviour is now good and pupils show good respect and tolerance for each other. They take an extremely active part in the life of the school. They are all fully included in all that it does and say that their views are valued. Recently members of the school council interviewed the prospective headteacher, asking some searching questions. Pupils and staff have successfully created a caring community based upon the Christian ethos. Pupils develop sensitivity, especially through activities such as the gardening club. However, there are still some weaknesses in their awareness of the customs and traditions of other people. They have a good understanding of the need for a healthy diet and exercise.

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Grade: 2

Teachers are enthusiastic and very conscientious. They inspire pupils with interesting lessons and, as a result, pupils are eager to learn. Planning is good and tasks build effectively upon pupils' previous learning, ensuring that they all do as well as they 3 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006 can. Good questioning techniques extend pupils' knowledge well. Stimulating use of ICT in the classrooms ° for example, video clips on interactive whiteboards ° also sustains pupils' concentration very well. Rigorous assessment records are maintained at the end of a lesson to demonstrate how successfully each pupil has understood what they have been taught. Marking is good and gives pupils clear guidance to show them how their work can improve, but they are not involved enough in assessing their own work.

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Grade: 2

The curriculum is good and is being adapted enthusiastically by teachers to make learning more realistic and relevant. They plan different levels of work for each year group, which ensures all pupils are suitably challenged. For example, teachers adapt the curriculum well so that pupils work alongside other pupils of the same ability, regardless of which year group they are from. Many older pupils report that 'the tasks make them think but are not too hard '. However, the school does not do enough to check that literacy skills are fully developed in the planning of other subjects and opportunities are missed to bring more meaning to reading and writing. The curriculum is enriched very well through a wide range of other activities and good links with other schools. The school pays particular attention to improving pupils' healthy lifestyles and personal safety, with opportunities for pupils to join residential visits. The curriculum is adapted

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Grade: 2

well for pupils with learning difficulties and they receive good support from teaching assistants and teachers.

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Grade: 2

Care, guidance and support are good. The teachers know the pupils well and provide sensitive care and support. Relationships throughout the school are good and, as a result, pupils' personal development is thriving. Parents are kept fully informed of developments with frequent newsletters. All relevant checks are carried out regularly to ensure pupils' continued safety. The school takes good care to see that children entering the Reception class are well prepared and that they quickly gain confidence. Staff also ensure that older pupils are confident as they approach joining their next school. Targets set for each pupil each half term for literacy and numeracy give them a clear understanding of how they need to improve. Records kept about each pupil's progress from one year to the next, and especially for those pupils with learning difficulties, are detailed and updated thoroughly to maintain a close check on their

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Grade: 2

progress. Teachers use these records well to plan what they need to teach next and, as a result, standards are improving. However, these records are not easy to interpret as data is contained across several pages for each pupil. 4 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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Grade: 2

Leadership and management of the school are good. The acting headteacher has built effectively upon the good foundations established previously. Following the changes to the leadership and management, the acting headteacher has recently updated the school's self-evaluation and, as a result, governors have a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the school. Rigorous monitoring and evaluation procedures have improved teaching and learning, resulting in improved standards and achievement. Strong evaluation of the performance of the school has identified priorities that will form the basis of the new school development plan. The literacy and numeracy leaders are now effectively undertaking monitoring and evaluation of pupils' work. However, they are not yet observing lessons or checking with sufficient rigour that teachers' plans have a good impact upon what the pupils achieve. 5 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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Grade: 2

set out in the guidance 'Complaints about school inspection', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. 6 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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Inspection judgements

School Overall Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding, grade 2 good, grade 3 satisfactory, and grade 4 inadequate

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Overall effectiveness

How effective, efficient and inclusive is the provision of education, integrated care and any extended services in meeting the needs of learners? How well does the school work in partnership with others to promote learners' well-being? 2 The quality and standards in the Foundation Stage 2 The effectiveness of the school's self-evaluation 2 The capacity to make any necessary improvements Yes Effective steps have been taken to promote improvement since the last inspection

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Achievement and standards

2 How well do learners achieve? 2 The standards 1 reached by learners How well learners make progress, taking account of any significant variations between groups of learners 2 How well learners with learning difficulties and disabilities make progress

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learners?

2 The extent of learners' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development 2 The behaviour of learners 2 The attendance of learners 2 How well learners enjoy their education 2 The extent to which learners adopt safe practices 2 The extent to which learners adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which learners make a positive contribution to the community How well learners develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being

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and interests of learners?

2 How well are learners cared for, guided and supported?

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and interests of learners?

Grade 1 - Exceptionally and consistently high; Grade 2 - Generally above average with none significantly below average; Grade 3 - Broadly average to below average; Grade 4 - Exceptionally low. 7 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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and supporting all learners?

How effectively leaders and managers at all levels set clear direction leading to improvement and promote high quality of care and education How effectively performance is monitored, evaluated and improved to meet challenging targets How well equality of opportunity is promoted and discrimination tackled so that all learners achieve as well as they can How effectively and efficiently resources, including staff, are deployed to achieve value for money The extent to which governors and other supervisory boards discharge their responsibilities Yes Do procedures for safeguarding learners meet current government requirements? No Does this school require special measures? No Does this school require a notice to improve? 8 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

Thank you for making us so welcome when we visited your school. We enjoyed talking with you and looking at your work. We particularly liked the way you all get on together. We found your school to be a happy place. It is providing you with a good education. These are the things that are particularly good. • Your school has improved well since the last inspection. • The school is led and managed well and your acting headteacher, although only in your school for a short time, has made good improvements. • You progress well and your standards in reading, writing and mathematics are good. • The teaching is good and your teachers plan interesting lessons for you so that you enjoy coming to school. • You are extremely well involved in all that the school does ° the way the school council interviewed your next headteacher really impressed us. • Your behaviour is much better than at the last inspection and is now good.

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Text from letter to pupils explaining the findings of the inspection

• The adults in your school care well for all of you. Even though your school is a good one, there are still some ways in which it could be even better. We have asked your headteacher and governors to: • Help the teachers who are responsible for literacy and numeracy to make better checks that their subjects are being developed well enough to improve your standards. • Make sure that the skills you are being taught in literacy are also covered well in other subjects such as history and science. • Help you to become more aware of the different customs and traditions of people in our country and around the world. You can help by telling your teachers when you need more help to understand what you are taught. 9 Inspection Report: Ampney Crucis Church of England Primary School, 5 December 2006

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